The Acoma Massacre refers to the brutal punitive expedition by Spanish conquistadors at Acoma Pueblo in January 1599 that resulted in the deaths of around 800 Acoma men, women and children during a three-day battle. Of the remaining Acoma who survived the attack, many were either enslaved or otherwise severely punished.[1].

The massacre was the result of a battle between Spanish colonizers and Native Americans from the Keres Acoma Nation in what is now New Mexico in retaliation for the death of 12 Spanish soldiers by the Acoma in the previous year.

The early years of Spanish exploits in the area had seen but a few mostly peaceful encounters with the Acoma people, who outnumbered the colonizers in the decades after 1540. However, in 1598, Zutacapan, the Acoma cacique and spiritual leader, learned that the Spanish emissaries intended to conquer Acoma Pueblo by force. Zutacapan also learned that the Spanish plan was to have all the Pueblo people move to a new village in the valley, where they would be living under Spanish rule, working forcibly for the Crown under the colonial labor system known as encomiendas.[2] Acoma people would also be forced to convert to Catholicism and forsake their traditional beliefs and practices altogether. Seeking to protect the Pueblo's material and religious integrity, Pueblo leadership decided to prepare for fighting against Spanish aggression.

Juan de Zaldívar, Oñate's nephew and soldier, was sent to the pueblo to meet with Zutacapan. Upon arriving on December 4, 1598, he demanded food and shelter for him and his sixteen men.[3] After having their demands denied, the group is said to have invaded Acoma homes, breaking walls and destroying property in order to take maize and blankets by force, harassing Keres women in the process and raping one woman. [4] The Acoma reacted against the invaders and a fight ensued, leaving Zaldivar and eleven of his men dead.

When Oñate learned of the incident, he ordered Juan's brother, Vicente de Zaldívar, to lead an expedition to punish the Acoma and set an example for other Pueblos. Taking about seventy men, Vincente de Zaldivar left San Juan Pueblo in late December or early January and arrived at Acoma on January 21, 1599.[5]

The main battle between the Acoma and the Spaniards began the following morning, January 22. For the first two days the Acoma were able to withstand Spanish forces until Zaldívar developed a plan to breach the Pueblo's defenses using a small cannon. On the third day, Zaldívar and twelve of his men ascended the mesa and opened fire on the Pueblo with the cannon. The heavy artillery tactics proved too powerful against the Natives' ability to fight back, and a large fire that engulfed many Acoma homes ensued. The conquistadors were then able to storm through the settlement.

There were an estimated 6,000 people living at or around the Acoma Pueblo in 1599 of which at least 2,000 were warriors. An estimated 500 men were killed in the battle, along with about 300 women and children. Some 500 prisoners were taken and later sentenced by Oñate to a variety of punishments after a trial was held at San Juan Pueblo. Oñate ordered that every male above the age of twenty-five would have his right foot cut off and be enslaved for a period of twenty years. Twenty-four men were thus brutally amputated.

Males between the age of twelve and twenty-five were also enslaved for twenty years along with all of the females above the age of twelve. Many of these natives were dispersed among the residences of government officials or at Franciscan missions. Sixty of the youngest women were deemed not guilty and sent to Mexico City where they were "parceled out among Catholic convents". Two Hopi men were taken prisoner at the pueblo; after each had one of his hands cut off, they were released to spread the word of Spain's might.[5]

An amateur scholar living near Santa Fe, New Mexico published his findings in a Letter to the Editor in 2002[6] in support of El Paso's new statue of Oñate, specifying that original records from the time translate as 'cut off the ends of their toes' and that no records exist to prove that sentence was ever carried out. The argument centered around the idea that no one would choose to limit a slave's usefulness by removing their foot. No other scholars have come out in support of this claim.

When King Philip heard the news of the massacre, and the punishments, Oñate was banished from New Mexico for his cruelty towards the natives and later returned to Spain to live out the remainder of his life. Several Acomas escaped capture by the Spanish in 1599 and by 1601 they had rebuilt their pueblo, which still stands.

The massacre remains a sensitive issue among Puebloans. In 1998, during the 400-year anniversary of Spain's founding of New Mexico colony, a group of Acomas cut off the right foot of Oñate's twelve-foot statue in Alcalde, New Mexico. They later issued a statement about the incident: "We took the liberty of removing Oñate's right foot on behalf of our brothers and sister of Acoma Pueblo ... We see no glory in celebrating Oñate's fourth centennial, and we do not want our faces rubbed in it." Darrell Chino, an Acoma man, stated, "It was funny when it happened to the statue, but it wasn't funny when it happened to the real people."

At the Oñate Monument and Visitors Center, Estevan Arrellano, the director of the site, supervised the attachment of a new foot to the statue. He later said, "Give me a break – it was 400 years ago. It's okay to hold a grudge, but for 400 years?" On April 21, 2007, an eighteen foot tall statue of Don Oñate – the largest bronze equestrian statue in the United States – was erected at El Paso. Members of the Acoma tribe attended the dedication ceremony and protested against the statue's construction.[5][7][8]